"It is the duty of the state government to take measures to stop the farmers from committing suicides, as they take the extreme step under utter duress. It should protect them and their families," he said on the sidelines of a function at Thane railway station.

The Shiv Sena leader said he recently undertook a tour of Nashik district to take stock of the situation where farmers suffered heavy losses due to unseasonal rains.

"I saw pomegranate, grapes and tomato crops were completely damaged. The government should provide help to the farmers who have lost their entire crops due to the unseasonal rains," he added.